Austin Ekeler or Jonathan Taylor
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Experts' Pick | |||
Jonathan Taylor RB - IND  Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC  Austin Ekeler RB - LAC |  | |
Expert |
94% Recommended by 194 of 207 experts |
6% Recommended by 13 of 207 experts |
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| Most Accurate Experts | |||
| Top ExpertsTop RB ExpertsTop Player Experts |  See who the Most Accurate Experts would draftUpgrade Now | ||
| Rankings | |||
| ECR | # 8 | # 14 | - |
| Best Rank | # 3 | # 5 | - |
| Worst Rank | # 20 | # 27 | - |
| Fantasy Points | |||
| Season Total | 216.8 | 111.3 | - |
| Avg Game | 14.5 | 11.1 | - |
| Avg Projection | 221.9 | 209.6 | - |
| Schedule | |||
| SOS Rank | 4 | 10 | - |
| Misc | |||
| Injury Alert | ‐ | ‐ | - |
| Expert Ranks | |||
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Jonathan Taylor | Austin Ekeler | Add Player |
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Jonathan Taylor RB - IND Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC Austin Ekeler RB - LAC | |
| 2021 Schedule | ||
| Week 1 | vs. SEA | at WAS |
| Week 2 | vs. LAR | vs. DAL |
| Week 3 | at TEN | at KC |
| Week 4 | at MIA | vs. LV |
| Week 5 | at BAL | vs. CLE |
| Week 6 | vs. HOU | at BAL |
| Week 7 | at SF | BYE WEEK |
| Week 8 | vs. TEN | vs. NE |
| Week 9 | vs. NYJ | at PHI |
| Week 10 | vs. JAC | vs. MIN |
| Week 11 | at BUF | vs. PIT |
| Week 12 | vs. TB | at DEN |
| Week 13 | at HOU | at CIN |
| Week 14 | BYE WEEK | vs. NYG |
| Week 15 | vs. NE | vs. KC |
| Week 16 | at ARI | at HOU |
| Week 17 | vs. LV | vs. DEN |
| Week 18 | at JAC | at LV |
Jonathan Taylor RB - IND Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC Austin Ekeler RB - LAC | |
| Rushing | ||
| Rush Attempts | 270.3 | 182.9 |
| Rush Yards | 1,209.3 | 845.8 |
| Rush TDs | 10.6 | 5.0 |
| Receiving | ||
| Receptions | 41.6 | 83.7 |
| Rec Yards | 321.7 | 696.5 |
| Rec TDs | 1.4 | 4.7 |
| Points | ||
| Fantasy Points | 221.9 | 209.6 |
Jonathan Taylor RB - IND Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC Austin Ekeler RB - LAC | |
| 2020 Points | ||
| Week 1 | 8.9 | 8.7 |
| Week 2 | 17.0 | 14.8 |
| Week 3 | 12.2 | 20.3 |
| Week 4 | 7.9 | 1.4 |
| Week 5 | 13.4 | ‐ |
| Week 6 | 11.5 | ‐ |
| Week 7 | ‐ | ‐ |
| Week 8 | 3.1 | ‐ |
| Week 9 | 7.4 | ‐ |
| Week 10 | 3.7 | ‐ |
| Week 11 | 11.4 | ‐ |
| Week 12 | ‐ | 12.9 |
| Week 13 | 19.5 | 6.8 |
| Week 14 | 28.5 | 14.6 |
| Week 15 | 15.5 | 7.9 |
| Week 16 | 19.4 | 12.8 |
| Week 17 | 37.4 | 11.1 |
| Week 18 | ‐ | ‐ |
| Total | 216.8 | 111.3 |
| Average | 14.5 | 11.1 |
Jonathan Taylor RB - IND Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC Austin Ekeler RB - LAC | |
| 2020 Targets | ||
| Week 1 | 6 | 1 |
| Week 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Week 3 | 1 | 11 |
| Week 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Week 5 | 3 | ‐ |
| Week 6 | 4 | ‐ |
| Week 7 | ‐ | ‐ |
| Week 8 | 2 | ‐ |
| Week 9 | 2 | ‐ |
| Week 10 | 2 | ‐ |
| Week 11 | 4 | ‐ |
| Week 12 | ‐ | 16 |
| Week 13 | 3 | 9 |
| Week 14 | 2 | 9 |
| Week 15 | 5 | 4 |
| Week 16 | 1 | 3 |
| Week 17 | 2 | 7 |
| Week 18 | ‐ | ‐ |
Jonathan Taylor RB - IND Jonathan Taylor RB - IND | Austin Ekeler RB - LAC Austin Ekeler RB - LAC | |
| Expert | ||
| Kyle Yates FantasyPros | Yes, Taylor finished the season on fire last year and was absolutely dominant down the stretch. However, we have to acknowledge the defenses that he was playing against during that time and that they weren't exactly top-tier units. As we project forward, it's important to keep in mind the offensive philosophy from this team and that they want to utilize multiple RBs in their rotation. With Marlon Mack back from injury, we should see him syphon some work away from JT and Nyheim Hines is always going to have his role. Taylor is still worth drafting as a top-10 RB, but we should be tempering our expectations for him heading into 2021. | Ekeler fell short of expectations last season, but missing several games will do that. When he was on the field, Ekeler was still an incredibly relevant fantasy option that displayed his receiving prowess time and time again. Since 2017, he ranks 4th in the NFL in total receiving yards and he's tied for first over that time span with 16 receiving touchdowns. There's very little reason to doubt Ekeler heading into this season and he should be back in the low-end RB1/high-end RB2 conversation in Half PPR formats. Additionally, he does receive a slight bump up in Full PPR formats. You know exactly what you're going to get from him each and every week and that's invaluable in fantasy football. |
| Brandon Funston The Athletic | Taylor catches a break with injuries at QB, O-line not looking as long-term as initially projected, but of minor concern still is talk of backup RBs easing the load a bit more in 2021 | Filling the Kamara role for new OC Joe Lombardi, a healthy Ekeler could push his previous receptions career high (92) |
| Mark Ringo Sleepers and Busts | DEVELOPING STORY.....Carson Wentz had surgery on his foot. It looks like he'll be back at practice Aug 23rd. If he suffers a setback that would be devastating for the Colts offense, including Jonathan Taylor. Also note, the Colts have a history of downplaying/flat out lying about injuries/outlooks: Edgerrin James' knee, Andrew Luck's retirement, etc. I don't trust the Colts any farther than I can throw them regarding their honestly about their players' injuries/outlooks. If Wentz is forced to miss a lot of time, you'd have to think Indy would call Chicago about Nick Foles who is languishing on their bench. He has a good relationship with Frank Reich from his time in Philly and knows the offense. The Colts are in win now mode. Their offense needs a veteran QB at the helm. Also just in all-pro Quenton Nelson has a bone issue in his foot, is having surgery, and is on a similar timeline. I bumped Taylor down the rankings. As more becomes available I will keep you updated! Stay tuned! Jonathan Taylor started out slow, but by the end of the year he was a run away freight train. Marlon Mack is back after signing a new deal and is healthy again. How will the Colts split up the carries? They invested a high pick in Taylor so he should get the bulk of them. The concerns with Taylor are: 1.) he was prone to fumbles in college and 2.) He's not the best at catching passes, which limits his upside in half and full point PPR formats. That said, this Colts team should be in a lot of shootouts in the AFC South. Taylor should get a bunch of TDs in 2021. | Joe Lombardi takes over the offensive coordinator duties. He came over from New Orleans with the coaching change. That could be good news for Ekeler. Lombardi likes a lot of quick passes. He used Alvin Kamara a lot out of the backfield. If he uses Ekeler the same way, fantasy owners will be ecstatic. Ekeler is best used in a RBBC. He's not big enough to hold up with a full workload. Still though, he is an excellent receiver. In half point and full point PPR formats, this might be the perfect storm for Ekeler to return to fantasy glory in 2021. The question is Ekeler more like Alvin Kamara or Darren Sproles. My best guess is Sproles which makes him a risky pick in the early rounds. |
| Zachary Hanshew FantasyPros | Taylor is just on the cusp of a RB1 ranking, but concerns about Carson Wentz, Indy's offensive line, and the backups Marlon Mack and Nyheim Hines have me a little wary. He proved to be a workhorse back as a rookie, but will he enjoy such an enormous volume in Year 2? | It's tough for me not to rank Ekeler even higher, but I'll temper expectations a little bit simply due to the talent of the four other backs ranked ahead of him. Ekeler scored just three touchdowns in 2020, the lowest mark of his career despite logging his second-most touches (170). He scored 11 times in 2019, and it's reasonable to expect positive touchdown regression in 2021. Ekeler's biggest asset is his pass-catching ability. He's secured 146 receptions over his last 26 games, good for 5.6 per contest, or 89.8 over a 16-game season. |
| Wolf of Roto Street Roto Street Journal | Feeling better that Reich has called him the lead horse, but still concerned if he'll follow through after it took a Jordan Freakin' Wilkins injury for Taylor to truly break out. | Huge line improvements with Linsley and NOW Slater at OT too, should be Round 2 steal with Top-5 overall upside -- just be wary of coaches preaching an RBBC appraoch. |
| Mike Tagliere FantasyPros | This time last year, I was much higher on Taylor than the consensus. I like Taylor, but did everyone forget about what happened the first 10 weeks of the season? Taylor was the RB19 and David Montgomery was the RB20. Taylor finished the year as the RB6 while Montgomery was the RB4. Many will talk about Montgomery's schedule as the reason for his production, hence why he's ranked at RB20 in ECR right now, but are they ignoring Taylor's schedule? He played against the Texans TWICE, Packers, Raiders, Jaguars, and the Steelers (who were decimated by injuries in that game). That's a large reason for his jump in production. I still like Taylor, just not nearly as much as the consensus. | In eight full games with Justin Herbert under center last year, Ekeler saw 63 targets. Over a full 16-game season, that amounts to 126 targets. While I don't expect him to get there, he's one of just two running backs (Christian McCaffrey is the other) who I'm projecting for 100-plus targets in 2021. Targets are worth twice as much as carries, so even if Ekeler winds up getting just 12 carries per game, it's not the end of the world. In fact, he can still finish as a borderline RB1 if he were to hit just 200 carries on the season. The new coaching staff obviously brings on some potential volatility, but there's not much other talent on the roster at running back, so his role should be very safe. |
| Kevin Wheeler The Draft Zone | Top analyst Shawn Siegele has Taylor as his 4th overall pick in drafts, certainly makes me think I should have him higher. 16 carries from inside the 5 as a rookie. | Ekeler not getting goal line carries should not be news. In 2019, Ekeler had 7 carries inside the 5, scoring only twice. Ekeler also scored 11 total TDs that year and finished as the PPR RB4. |
| Dan Harris FantasyPros | When Marlon Mack went down with a season-ending injury in Week 1, everyone expected Taylor's breakout to come immediately. But it didn't. Instead, it was a frustratingly slow build, during which it felt like Taylor left rushing yards and fantasy points on the table every game. But if you held out long enough, you were rewarded with a dominant stretch, during which Taylor feasted on a six-game stretch of soft run defenses, enough to propel him to a finish as the RB6 on the season. With an upgrade in quarterback and running behind a strong offensive line once again, a healthy Taylor should amass fantasy points aplenty this year. | |
| Brendan Tuma FantasyPros | Jonathan Taylor enters 2021 as a volatile first-round fantasy selection. This isn't meant to be a cop out in terms of taking a stance on him. Instead, it's important to understand this about him when it comes to roster construction. Taylor could very well be the No. 1 pick in 2022 redraft leagues. He could also be a frustrating player to roster given the uncertainty Carson Wentz brings to this entire Indianapolis offense. Another factor working against Taylor is the presence of Nyheim Hines, who should be considered the favorite for passing game work out of the backfield (no matter how much Taylor is "working on his hands" this summer). Ultimately, Taylor was an elite prospect entering the league and he smashed down the stretch of his rookie season. He isn't a known commodity like Nick Chubb or Aaron Jones, and therefore picking him requires a certain amount of risk tolerance, but I'd be willing to bet on an ascending player who has an overall RB1 finish in his range of outcomes. | This time last year we were anticipating Ekeler to have some struggles as a pass-catcher due to Tyord Taylor entering the season as the Chargers' starting QB. We know what happened next, and now Ekeler's arrow is pointing up in a big way, particularly in full PPR formats. Once he returned from his midseason injury, Ekeler averaged 6.2 catches per games and 90.2 yards per games from Weeks 12-17. Offensive line upgrades combined with a potential Year 2 Justin Herbert leap gives Ekeler a thrilling floor/ceiling combo for 2021 fantasy football leagues. |
| Joe Pisapia FantasyPros | Austin Ekeler is your classic PPR running back. He's in line for a ton of receptions and all purpose yardage with the Chargers this year. However, TDs are not his strong suit. Ekeler found te end zone just 3 times in 10 games last year. In auction leagues, Ekeler is the poor man's Alvin Kamara. In standard leagues, yards are yards, but his lack of goal line work could hold back his overall value. Still, he's a low end RB1 in all formats. | |
| Tim Petropoulos BRoto Fantasy | Taylor played so well down the stretch last season that many forget we looked like a bust for a big chunk of the season. With the rookie jitters shaken-off, the powerful Taylor looks like a lock to be a top-10 back in year 2. The two concerns, the downgrade at left tackle and the QB question. If Carson Wentz can return to his once dominant form, the sky is the limit for Taylor. | |
| Derek Lofland FantasyPros | Taylor was sixth among fantasy running backs with 234.8 fantasy points, but he ended the season with 125.3 fantasy points in his final 5 games. I think he picks up where he left off in his second year and he is a more consistent elite RB1 running behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL. | Ekeler battled some injuries, but still had 138.3 fantasy points in just 10 games. He should be a RB1 playing with Justin Herbert, if Ekeler can stay healthy. |
